This guide provides information for nominated supervisors in the effective management, discussion and planning of staff member’s annual and long service leave.
As per our company Agreement, the Recreational Leave Policy and the Long Service Leave Policy outline the arrangements for the accrual and management of annual leave and long service leave for the staff member and the supervisor.
The guide is composed of four (4) parts:
- Part 1 provides background and general information on the benefits of leave management, the responsibilities of Staff and Supervisor, the normal application of leave, potential barriers to taking leave, ways to encourage staff to utilise leave, ways of taking leave, cashing out of annual and long service leave, managing excess leave and managing difficult conversations with staff.
- Part 2 provides a simple four (4) step approach to Annual Leave and Long Service Management, resources, reference material and Template letters.
- Part 3 provides information on the content of each Template Letter, who provides the letter to the staff member, when it is provided, purpose, resources and reference material.
- Part 4 has each of the Template Letters to be used.
PART 1
Benefits
The benefits of the effective management, planning and application of leave include:
- Staff need to take periods of leave or use leave regularly for their wellbeing, work-life balance and connection with family and friends;
- Maintaining staff health and wellbeing, which is critical to a productive working and learning environment. Not taking leave may expose staff to an increased risk of burnout and stress related illnesses, potentially increasing use of sick leave;
- Taking leave regularly may provide other staff with an opportunity to act in a position of higher duties or with different responsibilities, thereby increasing skills and enabling career development opportunities;
- Avoiding the possibility of staff who have accrued large amounts of leave taking a large block of leave to reduce their leave balance. This may have a negative impact on provision of services without adequate planning for coverage; and
- Organisational leave liabilities need to be managed at sustainable levels so as not to impact on funds in reserve required for other organisational requirements.
Responsibilities
Staff members and supervisors both have responsibilities to manage leave. Conversations about the planning and taking of leave are encouraged throughout the year, particularly at the time of the annual performance review and plan (PRP) discussion, which is prompted by the PRP form.
- Making plans to take their annual or long service leave regularly and discussing this with their supervisor, which includes providing appropriate notice for leave requests,
- Requesting leave via staff connect, and
- Working with their supervisor to develop a leave management plan to reduce excessive leave balances.
Supervisors are responsible for:
- The day-to-day management of annual and long service leave
- Ensuring that staff do not accrue large leave balances and are actively encouraged to take leave
- Regularly reviewing staff leave balances and ensuring that accrued leave is taken
- Identifying the most appropriate times for leave to be taken in the work area
- Working with staff to reduce their leave balances within a reasonable timeframe
- Understanding the Agreement and policy provisions which inform the accrual, taking and management of annual leave and long service leave
- Understanding their accountability in effectively managing leave and associated financial implications.
Application of Annual and Long Service Leave
Staff members start accruing leave from the day they commence at our company. The Agreement outlines the accrual per year for annual and long service leave and any conditions of access to long service leave entitlements. Information is available to staff through their payslip and on Staff Connect. Information is also available to the nominated supervisor through the ‘Manager’s Options’ in Staff Connect, and through the Human Resources Quarterly Leave Report available to nominated supervisors and managers.
A conversation about leave planning or leave taking can occur at any time. Managing the expectations of staff on planning and taking leave should commence between the nominated supervisor and staff member at the time of induction, and for new academic staff as a part of their annual workload allocation at the time of commencement.
Some processes, including the annual Performance Review and Plan (PRP), prompt the nominated supervisor and staff member to discuss leave planning for the next twelve months. The Human Resources Quarterly Leave Report also serves as a prompt to nominated supervisors to review the accrual, taken and booked leave of their staff and initiate a discussion where appropriate.
For academic staff the planning and taking of four (4) weeks annual leave per year or the equivalent pro-rata amount is a component of their workload allocation. This means that for a full time academic staff member 1595 workload hours are allocated on the basis that 140 hours of annual leave is taken each year, otherwise additional workload can be allocated.
Following a conversation about leave planning the staff member should apply for the agreed leave on Staff Connect. This will enable the updating of leave records in the next Quarterly Leave Report.
When leave is effectively planned and regularly utilised by a staff member in a discussion with and the approval of their nominated supervisor, the management of leave is normally straightforward. However, there are situations where this may not be the case where a staff member:
- is reluctant to take either their annual leave and/or long service leave
- has accrued annual leave in excess of forty (40) days
- has accrued long service leave in excess of sixteen (16) weeks
- has accrued both annual leave in excess of forty (40) days and long service leave in excess of sixteen (16) weeks
Under the Agreement our company and nominated supervisors have the ability to reasonably direct staff to take leave with appropriate notice under certain conditions. Ideally, in the first instance the nominated supervisor should meet with the affected staff member to discuss planning their leave and to understand any potential barriers (if any) impeding the staff member to take leave, and to consider options and ways to enable leave to be taken.
Ways to Encourage Staff to Utilise Leave
It is important to be cautious and consider individual circumstances, workplace or personal; Remember staff will have different perceived barriers to taking leave. It is not a ‘one size fits all’ approach and each conversation can have different outcomes.
As a supervisor or manager of staff you will need to consider:
- Emphasising the importance of taking leave to focus on family, friends or rejuvenation and not only for travel and holidays
- Demonstrating clear management support for leave taking, and that supervisors and managers model desired behaviour by actively taking leave as well
- Taking a supportive approach, working with staff to assist planning and address their concerns regarding workplace, personal or other barriers
- Providing adequate cover of a staff member’s work during leave periods thereby reducing possible anxiety they have in taking leave or returning from leave
- Working with the staff member to document tasks or work to be performed pre-leave and allocate to other staff to perform specific duties and share the load
- Effective email management during leave periods, examples are:
- reduce email build up while staff are on leave by ensuring someone is reviewing emails, or
- effectively use the ‘Out of Office Message’ function to redirect queries to an alternative contact person
- For Professional staff roles dependent on the period of leave, consider if this could provide a development opportunity for other professional staff through higher duties
- Plan for staff taking leave – when setting work objectives for the year ahead or creating a new position, plan workload allocation on the basis of 48 weeks not 52 weeks
- Consider what the optimal and non-optimal times for taking leave are in order to plan a staff member’s leave or more than one staff member’s leave, for example:
- To ensure services are not impacted to staff, students and relevant stakeholders
- It may only be possible for staff, such as academic or academic support staff, to take leave during the non-teaching weeks
- Engage with staff about the importance of and potential timeframes for taking leave – the performance review and planning process is an ideal time to discuss planned leave and factor into the year ahead
Ways of taking annual leave and long service leave
The following are examples of how leave can be taken in various ways, other than as a block, and you may think of other ways which enable staff to utilise their leave based on individual circumstance.
Encourage staff to take a combination of holidays and short bursts/periods of leave to reduce workplace, personal or other barriers:
- One or two days regularly taken either side of a weekend and long weekend can constitute a refreshing break
- One day’s leave taken every two weeks for six months can be less threatening to a staff member then asking them to take a three week break whilst achieving the same benefits for all parties. Dependent on leave accrued this could be extended longer than six months
- A combination of the above
- Consider variations that may work for the staff member given their individual circumstance(s)
A combination of holidays and short breaks minimises personal barriers to taking leave and if taken frequently they encourage employees to spend leave ‘enjoying’ rather than ‘recovering’.
Cashing out of Annual Leave and Long Service leave
The University does genuinely encourage and expect all staff, supervisors and managers included, to fully utilise their annual leave and long service leave. Whilst it is preferable that staff plan and take eave, staff can request the ‘Cashing Out’ of portions of their annual leave and long service leave balance under certain conditions.
Management of Excess Leave
Once you have established that a staff member has accrued excess leave, you will need to actively manage the situation to ensure leave balances are reduced to an acceptable level.
Arrange to meet with the staff member to discuss their accrued leave and how they will reduce it. This may require more than one conversation in order to consider if there are any barriers to the staff member taking leave, discussing options, and confirming a way forward. The initial meeting is an opportunity for you to:
- ask the staff member if there is a reason they have been unable to take leave
- consider any actions you may need to take to enable the staff member to take leave
- advise the staff member you would like them to take some of their leave and work together on a leave plan
- agree on a time frame for the staff member to consider their options and respond to you and advise on their leave plans
- organise a time for another meeting if required
Managing Difficult Conversations with Staff
Having a conversation with a staff member regarding management of excess leave may be difficult if there is resistance or reluctance. Consider the following advice to assist you in having this conversation:
- Prepare beforehand/seek advice from Human Resources
- Consider the potential barriers to taking leave previously described as you may well be familiar with the staff member’s approach to work and leave, and which allows you to preprepare to address concerns they may have
- Familiarise yourself with the ACU Staff Enterprise Agreement and relevant leave policies
- Listen to the staff member and explore their reasons for accumulating leave
- Acknowledge the reasons but be clear about the University’s expectations of taking leave
- Educate the staff member regarding the ACU Staff Enterprise Agreement and relevant policy
- Discuss the benefits of taking leave (rest/recreation, own wellbeing, family/friends) with the staff member
- Advise that our company may provide notice to take leave however the preferred option would be to work together to come up with a leave plan
- Explore options and work together to come up with best solution